Connor Rudolph and Rob Smith, both seniors at Independence High School, have recently begun a new venture during these uncertain times.
In late March, Rudoph’s father, Denny Rudoph, had heard something about a ‘victory garden’ on television. After researching what in fact a victory garden even was, he had tasked the two teens with building one in his backyard.
The project went well, with Denny Rudolph sharing the completed project on social media. It would soon be apparent, however, that what had originally been seen as just a one-off project by the two teens would explode into a new business venture that reached far beyond Williamson County’s borders.
What are victory gardens?
During World War I and World War II, the American government launched efforts to encourage citizens to grow their own fruits, vegetables and herbs in what were known as victory gardens or war gardens. The efforts served two purposes: to both supplement food rations during wartime and to boost morale on the homefront.
Beyond the United States, victory gardens were also popular in Canada, Britain and Australia during World War I and World War II.
Victory gardens for Spring Hill a beyond
“My boys - I call them my boys, they're like brothers - were looking for something to do where they could make money, get away from the video games and be productive,” Denny Rudolph said of his son and Smith.
That desire to keep busy during a time of social distancing and quarantines would be the catalyst that launched the two into this new venture. After sharing the first victory garden on social media, Denny Rudolph said his inbox on Facebook was soon flooded with requests from residents of Spring Hill and beyond, all eager to get their very own victory garden.
Connor Rudolph and Rob Smith work on new victory gardens before transporting them.
In the next 10 days, Denny Rudolph said the two had constructed more than 20 victory gardens, sometimes building two to four of them a day.
“They actually go to the homes, dig up the area, level it, put the bed down, put a cardboard weed barrier down and fill it up with nine bags of dirt - it's pretty labor intensive,” Denny Rudolph said. “People were dying for it... people are wanting stuff to do at home.”
As the requests continued to flood in, the two teens’ clientele expanded beyond residents looking for ways to pass the time, with the Pre-K center Stepping Stone Academy in Murfreesboro hoping to get their own victory gardens.
“They went out there and put two beds together, and Betsy - the owner - fell in love with them,” Denny Rudolph said. “So the doors that are opening for them once all this coronavirus stuff blows through is pretty exciting.”
As business continued to surge, Connor Rudolph and Smith weren’t sure what to do with all their newly-earned money. That’s when both teens decided to put some of their earnings towards a charitable cause, something The Well Outreach food pantry shared in a social media post of their own.
“Yesterday, [two] high school seniors stopped by The Well,” reads the post. “With all of the downtime and with no school, the young men started a company building raised garden beds for their neighbors and family members.”
“The jobs, although hard labor, ended up being successful and they’ve had many demands for additional services. Their first week, they decided to bring $50 - a sizable portion of their profits - and donate to The Well to help us buy food for the hungry in our community.”
“It’s been a tough month; fast-paced, lots of unforeseen challenges, coupled with being only a week in our new facility. And many, many hungry to feed, much of them new to our food pantry. Then, you have a gift like this, and it’s so humbling and inspiring! This is one of our stories of who gives to The Well.”
Both Connor Rudolph and Smith said they plan to donate to The Well in the future, and plan on continuing their new business “for as long as [they] have business.”
Those interested in learning more about Connor Rudolph and Smith’s victory gardens may contact Denny Rudolph via Facebook by clicking here.